Governing is complicated. Public policy in modern societies spans a vast range of issues, each of which subdivides into further domains and trade-offs. Legislators, executives, and judges must make frequent decisions on matters that often bear little obvious connection to one another. For citizens seeking to influence politics, whether through voting, activism, or other means, this complexity can render political life bewildering and opaque.
How can governing elites and ordinary citizens navigate this complexity? Broadly speaking, two powerful organizing tools help structure modern politics. One is the political party: a durable coalition of actors who coordinate to win elections and govern collectively once in office. The other is ideology: an overarching system of values and empirical claims that simplifies political choice by prioritizing a limited set of principles. Parties and ideologies are related but analytically distinct. Ideologies can provide coherence, justification, and identity for parties, while parties translate ideas into strategy, compromise, and policy. Tensions between the two—between principle and pragmatism, coherence and flexibility—are a defining feature of modern democratic politics.
In this seminar, we examine political parties and ideologies in American politics, with particular emphasis on the contemporary era. We will devote a little attention to earlier periods, both for their intrinsic interest and to learn how current partisan and ideological configurations emerged. We will also briefly situate the American case in comparative perspective, using it to explore broader questions about party systems, ideological polarization, and democratic representation. The United States is a revealing case, combining strong partisan identities with relatively weak formal party organizations and a distinctive pattern of ideological conflict.
To understand parties and ideologies, we will examine political actors at both the elite and mass levels. Accordingly, the course bridges the traditional divide in the study of American politics between political behavior and political institutions. Parties and ideologies will be treated as phenomena that operate simultaneously in minds, organizations, and governing structures.
The seminar is organized around weekly readings and intensive discussion. One major assignment, modeled on the style of Ph.D. qualifying exams, will require students to respond to a synthetic question drawing on the full quarter’s readings. A second major assignment will ask students to connect parties and ideologies to one of their ongoing research projects or substantive interests. Because parties and ideologies shape so many dimensions of political life, students should find ample opportunities to integrate course themes into their broader scholarly work.